In
defining American Exceptionalism it would be impossible to ignore the
immense importance of America’s early educational system. The
reason for this is that we can see thus far the passionate attention
the Founders paid to Christian principles and to the incorporating them
into their private, public and political lives. Education is no different.
The Bible was THE book of learning for all education from the 1600’s
until the beginning of the twentieth century where it began to be set
aside and then in the 1960’s completely illuminated from schools
entirely.

Our
Founders believed, and rightfully so, that the Bible was the source
for knowledge. Today’s view that religion and schools should never
cross paths is not what the Founders intended, it was the ‘opinion’
of the 1947 Supreme Court. When looked at even on the surface the schools
have used the Bible for its main text since the pilgrims arrived in
the early 1600’s. Then in 1947 a Supreme Court decides that for
347 years the law was being broken, even by those that wrote the law.
This is arrogance on steroids.

There
are many documented situations that refute the 1947 decision so I would
like to discuss a few of them. From this we will see what the Pilgrims
and the Founders believed to be the most important aspects of education.
The first laws providing public education for all children were passed
in 1642 in Massachusetts and in 1647 in Connecticut and it was called
the “Old Deluder Satan Law.” These colonists believed that
the proper protection from civil abuses could only be achieved by eliminating
Bible illiteracy.

“It
being one chief project of that old deluder, Satan, to keep
men from the knowledge of Scriptures, as in former time. .
. . It is therefore ordered . . [that] after the Lord hath increased
[the settlement] to the number of fifty householders, [they] shall then
forthwith appoint one within their town, to teach all such children
as shall resort to him, to write and read. . . . And it is further ordered,
that where any town shall increase to the number of one hundred families
or householders, they shall set up a grammar school . . . to instruct
youths, so far as they may be fitted for the university.”[1]
(emphasis added)

Note
that they put a premium on the ability to understand the Word of God.
Many American literacy laws were directed at the necessity of understanding
the Bible. A Connecticut law in 1690 read:

“This
legislature observing that . . . there are many persons unable to read
the English tongue and thereby incapable to read the holy Word
of God or the good laws of this colony . . . it is ordered
that all parents and masters shall cause their respective children and
servants, as they are capable, to be taught to read distinctly the English
tongue.”[2]
(emphasis added)

Please
make note of the reason for education, people were unable to read the
Word of God. Even the concerns of the higher education facilities of
the day were directed to know Scripture as well as establishing their
eternal destination. The 1636 rules for Harvard stated:

“Let
every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider
well the main end of his life and studies and to know God and Jesus
Christ which is eternal life. (John 17:3) and therefore to lay Christ
in the bottom as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.
And seeing the Lord only giveth wisdom, let everyone seriously set himself
in reading the Scriptures twice a day that he shall be ready to give
such an account of his proficiency therein.”[3]

Harvard
was so dedicated to this goal that their two mottos were: “For
the Glory of Christ” and “For Christ and the Church.”[4]
Many reading this may not be aware that most of our colleges and universities
were founded by ministers for the purpose of raising up ministers. They
were specifically designed as a ‘seminary’ but they were
quite able to produce a minister as easily as a scientist or businessman.

William
and Mary was founded by Reverend James Blair in 1692. This is the same
William and Mary that removed the Cross from the chapel because it was
too controversial. This institution was founded so that:

“The
youth may be piously educated in good letters and manners and that the
Christian faith may be propagated . . . to the glory of Almighty God.”[5]

Ten
ministers teamed up in 1699 to form Yale. Their goal was to:

“To
plant, and under Divine blessing, to propagate in this wilderness the
blessed reformed Protestant religion”[6]

In
1701 when classes began Yale set these standards:

“The
Scriptures . . . morning and evening [are] to be read by the students
at the times of prayer in school . . . studiously endeavoring in the
education of said students to promote the power and purity of religion.”[7]

The
rules really didn’t change much in the first one hundred years
for Yale. In 1787 the students were charged:

“All
of the scholars are required to live a religious and blameless
life according to the rules of God’s Word, diligently
reading the holy Scriptures, that fountain of Divine light and truth,
and constantly attending all the duties of religion. . . . All the scholars
are obliged to attend Divine worship in the College Chapel on the Lord’s
Day and on Days of Fasting and Thanksgiving appointed by public Authority.”[8]
Notice the emphasis on living according to the Word of God. Yale, with
its demand for high standards of Christian living produced many of the
distinguished Founders and signers such as Lyman Hall, Lewis Morris,
Oliver Wolcott, William Samuel Johnson, Philip Livingston and William
Livingston.

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Some
of the ministers that were involved in America’s greatest revival,
the Great Awakening, were President of Princeton University, Jonathan
Edwards, Aaron Burr Sr., Samuel Finley, Samuel Davies, and Dr. John
Witherspoon. Witherspoon was the President just prior to the Revolutionary
War. These were some of the requirements during his term as President:

“Every
student shall attend worship in the college hall morning and evening
at the hours appointed and shall behave with gravity and reverence during
the whole service. Every student shall attend public worship on the
Sabbath. . . . Beside the public exercises or religious worship on the
Sabbath, there shall be assigned to each class certain exercises for
their religious instruction suited to the age and standing of the pupils.
. . . and no student belonging to any class shall neglect them.”[9]
This university also produced many prominent Founders such as Benjamin
Rush, James Madison, Jonathan Dayton, and Gunning Bedford.

Dartmouth
was founded in 1754 by Reverend Eleazar Wheelock. He was very specific
as to the purpose for this college:

“Whereas
. . . the Reverend Eleazar Wheelock . . . educated a number of the children
of the Indian natives with a view to their carrying the Gospel in their
own language and spreading the knowledge of the great Redeemer among
the savage tribes. And . . . the design became reputable among the Indians
insomuch that a larger number desired the education of their children
in said school. . . . [Therefore] Dartmouth College [is established]
for the education and instruction of youths . . . in reading, writing
and all parts of learning which will appear necessary and expedient
for civilizing and Christianizing the children.”[10]
(emphasis added)

When
we look at the majority of the colleges and universities founded during
this time frame we see that they all had the basic requirements of Christian
principles to produce better Christians and/or propagate the Christian
religion. The morals taught in the Bible were expected of all the students.
Christianity’s righteousness was the goal of these places of higher
learning. Before 1870 almost all places of higher learning were provided
by denominations instead of the state. Of the two hundred and forty-six
colleges founded by the close of 1860, seventeen were State institutions
and but two or three others had any States connections.[11]

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George
Washington always supported the Christian faith, even though many of
the modern so-called historians say differently. There was a time when
Chiefs of the Delaware Indian tribe brought him three Indian youths
to be trained in the American schools. Washington assured then that
“Congress will look upon them as their own children,”[12]
and then told the Chiefs that:

“You
do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all, the
religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier
people than you are. Congress will do every thing they can to assist
you in this wise intention.”[13]

The
evidence that Christianity was the basis of the education system during
the founding era is unmistakable and irrefutable.

Pastor Roger
Anghis is the Founder of RestoreFreeSpeech.org, an organization designed
to draw attention to the need of returning free speech rights to churches
that was restricted in 1954.

President of
The Damascus Project, TheDamascusProject.org,
which has a stated purpose of teaching pastors and lay people the need
of the churches involvement in the political arena and to teach the
historical role of Christianity in the politics of the United States.
Married-37 years, 3 children, three grandchildren.